Mistakes
by futurejkrowling-x
Summary: As Ruby lies in her hospital bed,possibly at death's door, Charlie is reunited with a face from the past..  Please Read and Review!
1. Chapter 1

**A little idea I thought of that I felt compelled to write down. Now, before I start, I'm not From Australia, I'm from the UK, and in the UK we might say things a little differently from the Australians so please correct me in the reviews if I say something you don't understand or I've said incorrectly. Hope you enjoy it anyway!**

**Charlie POV**

Chapter 1

I heard the clang of the hospital doors as I barged through them, admittedly in a state of horror. I was close to tears as I half walked, half ran through the hospital corridors, Angelo's footsteps closing on me.

"In here", Angelo's almost gruff voice slowed me to a halt and I spun round. Angelo was already through the door and into the room before I even got the chance to take a small step forward, though I caught a glimpse of his figure as I spun round. It was a battle between my head and my heart as I approached the room. My heart told me to enter but my head told me it would only trouble my soul more if I set my sight on her motionless body.

I sighed, following my heart. I cautiously took a step forward then another and finally I was able to walk shakily into the room. I kept my head bowed and then, as I approached her bedside, I gazed up.

I gasped, so distraught I could have collapsed at that very minute. My own little girl...how could she be lying in that position, fighting for her life?

My night had started off normal. Ruby had went out with her friends. Although, she hadn't mentioned which ones. Looking back on it, I feel idiotic for not questioning her about it. But seeing as Ruby was out with some friends and Angelo and I had the house to ourselves, we decided to have a last minute date. Nothing special, just dinner and a night cosied up in front of the TV watching a romantic comedy, maybe.

It was about 7:30pm when Angelo knocked on my door and I had rushed to get it.

"You look...beautiful", Angelo grinned, gazing at me up and down as I swung open the door to greet him. I liked that about Angelo; he always had something so sweet to say about me, even if he'd just caught the slightest glimpse at me. He made me feel like royalty, like I had the _best_ boyfriend ever.

"Thank you!" I grinned, "you don't look too bad yourself", I leaned forward and kissed him tenderly on the lips.

Then taking him by the hand, I whisked him inside.

It wasn't long before we sat at the dinner table and tucked in to our meal. And even then, Ruby's whereabouts hadn't concerned me. I always thought, 'she's a smart kid. It's a big world out there but she has the brains to conquer it'. Even now, I believe I was right. However, that was no excuse for paying so little concern to my own daughter. I blame myself, I'm sure any mother would.

We had joked and laughed, not a care in the world, as we continued through the night. It had never even struck me that by 11:00pm Ruby hadn't arrived home. I should have set the record straight, given her a time to arrive back by. Like I said, I blame myself.

It was the phonecall that finally made me consider Ruby's safety. How ridiculous does that sound? Talk about bad parenting! It took a phonecall, a _phonecall, _to make me, Ruby's own mother, realise she was still out with her friends.

The phonecall had occurred at the moment Angelo and I were cuddled up on the sofa. Angelo had been closest to the phone, meaning he answered it. I watched him intently as his expression faded from content to worried. Noticing his changing expressions, I sat up and clasped one hand to his leg. I gazed into his eyes, suddenly hoping I could magically read his thoughts. This mission, however, was a fail.

"Look, Charlie", he held both my hands after he put down the phone, "we need to get to the hospital now, ok?"

"What? What's going on?" my voice seemed to rise to its highest pitch as exasperation took its toll.

"Ruby's been in an accident", it amazed be how cool and collected Angelo seemed to be in this situation. He grabbed my hand and swept me out the door and towards the car.

"An accident? I shrieked.

Hearing the faint 'click' of the car unlocking was Angelo's que. He gently pushed me into the car seat, almost knocking me over; not because of his strength, but because of my weakness. And as I fastened my seatbelt, Angelo roared the car into action and was off to the hospital as fast as a bullet fresh from a gun.

I barely had time to consider the situation before we had arrived. We exited the car and rushed, hand in hand, into the hospital. None of us knowing the fate of my daughter.

And that's what lead us to this moment. The moment in hospital where I stood beside my daughter's hospital bed and watched as the snake-like tubes linked in and out of her body. Her body seemed still, almost as if she lay dead. The doctor, however, was quick to assure me.

"We're not sure if she's going to be ok, only time will tell", the doctor didn't seem to need psychic powers to be able to tell what we were thinking. Years of experience, I imagined.

"What happened?" I asked, my voice shaking.

"We're not one hundred percent sure yet...", the doctor sighed, watching Ruby, "someone found her and transported her here".

"Who?" I asked.

At that very moment I heard footsteps approaching us. I spun round.

"Joey".

**I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Please review if you want me to write more!**

**Georgina **


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for all the great reviews you guys left me! Your comments really inspire me and prompt me to continue on writing, so thank you! Here's chapter 2. Enjoy! **

**Charlie POV**

Chapter 2

I couldn't hide my shock when I caught sight of Joey. I wasn't exactly sure what my emotions should have been; happy, sad, confused, relieved? I had no idea. I could barely contemplate these emotions for starters! But there she was.

I felt Angelo shift slightly by my side as he cleared his throat. Hesitating from Angelo to Joey, I shifted my gaze to meet his.

I felt my stomach flip a little as I finally recognized the eery silence in the room. Angelo's face summed it all up, to be honest. He looked awkward as hell, as did Joey. I could sense the many eyes upon us, each and every nosey nurse knowing the awkward silence would, more or less, result in an abrubt conflict in the centre of the hospital ward. I gulped, imagining the consequences.

"How is she doing?" It was Joey, of all people, who broke the awkward silence. She gestured to Ruby as she spoke, prompting me to spin round and face my daughter. My heart sunk once again as I lay eyes on her. She still hadn't awoken -god knows if she ever would- and there was still no sign of life within her; the only reassurance I got of her being alive was the freqent beeping from the monitor next to her bedside.

As I watched her, silently praying she would move, maybe even just an inch, I heard faint words being said around me. I sighed, then focused back on the conversation.

"...we can only hope", I caught the end of Angelo's role in the conversation, but I imagined he had been explaining Ruby's current position to Joey.

He swayed awkwardly, I think silently nudging me to speak.

Speaking actual words was harder than I had first imagined. I gazed at her for a few seconds. She looked the same, to be honest; her hair scrunched up into a high ponytail, her clothes resembling a tomboy type nature and her expression deep and serious, not a hint of happiness within her. I closed my eyes and swallowed hard.

Looking down at the ground, I finally spoke, my tone serious, "I think we should talk over coffee".

Memories flooded back as we sat, Angelo, Joey and I, silently in the hospital canteen. No one dared to say a word; we simply sat and sipped at our coffees. Every few seconds I looked up, just to check if she was watching me. I worried what she would think of me with Angelo. It probably didn't seem right to her...after all we went through.

"Can you tell us what happened?" Angelo asked, breaking the silence.

"With what?"

"With _Ruby_!"I couldn't hide the frustration in my voice. It had struck a nerve; I no longer worried about Joey, I simply remained focused on my daughter. That's how fast my emotions switched. That's the level of confusion and misunderstanding I was experiencing.

"Sorry", she obviously sensed my anger as she apologized, though she continued to stare down, and her voice showed little emotion, "Ruby was just there at the wrong place at the wrong time".

"What do you mean?" Angelo straightened up in his chair.

"She was on the road when I was driving. It was dark. Once I had seen her, I tried to slow down but...", Joey shook her head then glugged down the remains of her coffee.

"Which road was she on?" I asked, determined to paint the picture in my head, even if it would cause me more pain in the long run.

"I don't know", Joey rushed her answer, leaving Angelo and I to exchange looks.

"And she just walked out in front of you?"

"I think so"

"Was she with anyone?"

"I DON'T KNOW", Joey put her head in her hands and sobbed for a few minutes. Angelo sat back in his chair, defeated by crocodile tears. However I was having none of it.

"Joey, we're going to continue to question you over what happened, whether you like it or not. And it won't just be us, the concerned family, the investigation team will be knocking on your door too", I tried not to sound harsh, but the agonizing pain of not being able to determine what had happened to my little girl was inevitable, "please try and remember. This is hurting us more than anything".

Joey rose to her feet and looked at me directly in the eyes, "Charlie, I can't remember anything".

I sighed as I watched her stride towards the door. Angelo squeezed my hand but, as Joey flashed a look back as she pushed through the doors, I felt compelled to free his grasp from mine. He took a minute before he glanced at me again. I held his gaze through the corner of my eye, sighing once more as disappointment and sorrow was reflected back.

"I'm going to go check on Ruby", I mumbled, lifting myself from my chair.

I exited the canteen, my thoughts askew. Only a few minutes down the corridor, I heard quiet weeps coming from along the corridor. I edged nearer and nearer before I poked my head around the corner.

"Joey?"

Joey looked up to me, her sleeves soaked with tears. I gnawed at my lip, attempting to prevent myself from crying.

"Joey you're going to have to tell me what's going on...please".

"Ok", Joey wept, "I'll tell you everything".

**So, how was this chapter? Did you enjoy it? Thanks for reading, I appreciate it! Please Review also!**

**Georgina **


	3. Chapter 3

**Before I start, again, I can't stress enough how much I love you guys for the reviews you give me. It means so much to see that people are truly enjoying reading my stories, so thank you! **

**Charlie POV**

Chapter 3

Words are a struggle to describe how unbelievably nervous I was as I watched Joey slowly slide into a corner to make room for me to sit down; I knew what was coming next, Joey would tell me everything, just as she had promised.

I guess the thing that terrified me most was that I was finally going to know what happened, I was going to know the _details_. And, although I strived to discover what truly happened to Ruby, there was part of me that thought I would be unable to handle it. Everyone saw me as Charlie; tough and strong-minded, but I had my weaknesses like everyone else and I feared this moment would be one of mine.

Joey cleared her throat, interrupting my thoughts. She glanced at me, her eyes wide and flooding with tears.

"Talk", I urged, a zombie-like feature straining my voice.

"I don't know what to say", Joey mumbled, hiding herself within her hoodie.

I gazed at her, self-consciously trying to determine what was going on in that brain of hers.

"Tell me what happened", I kept my voice quiet, in attempt not to scare her off.

Joey spluttered, producing a noise that I could only describe as something you may do before you're sick.

"I don't know where to start", she finally admitted, drawing back her head to face me.

"Start wherever you feel it's necessary".

Joey seemed to contemplate this and then, with slight hesitation, began, "I.. I was on the road and I..."

I watched as she shook her head in disapproval of herself then returned her focus back to me, "Charlie, you can't blame me for this".

Her words, so sincere, so unbelievably innocent, they struck a chord with me.

Looking into her eyes, I could only see helplessness. A lonely girl, maybe, lost deep in this gigantic world.

After only a second to rethink this, Joey was darting off.

"What? Where are you going?" I raced after her, my profession coming in handy as I zoomed through corridors, my eyes ticking from one side to the other; trying to find her.

"Joey, please!" I called out, only to hear silence and only to see turning heads of disapproving patients.

I gave up only ten minutes later. I felt it was pointless to hunt from corridor to corridor, knowing the odds that I would find her were against me.

With this in mind, I trudged wearily back towards Ruby's ward. Everything that was happening with Joey, it had left me little time to comprehend everything that was happening to Ruby. Only a few times, had I gazed at her lying in that hospital bed. It was now becoming more obvious of where I should have been and who I should have been worrying most about. Thing was; my thoughts were still fuzzy, I still didn't fully understand the situation, though I was slowly coming to grips with it.

I peeked through the doorway, hoping panic hadn't arisen while I had been gone. Thankfully, my worried thoughts were put to rest as I spied only the doctor hanging round her bedside.

As I walked through the door, he smiled at me, reflecting the most comforting smile I had ever set eyes upon.

"She's in a stable condition, right now, Miss Buckton", he informed me, predicting what I was about to ask.

I nodded, unable to draw my focus from her, "I don't understand", I sighed.

The doctor observed me, as if attempting to read my thoughts, "What do you mean?"

"I don't understand how it happened, why she's.." - I gestured towards Ruby- "like this".

"It seems you're not the only one, no one does. All that the cops can let on is that it was a hit and run, apparently".

I sighed, trailing my hand along her face. I was shocked at how frail and weak her skin seemed and the healthy colour that usually flushed her face had disappeared. I crinkled my nose, trying to repress the tears.

"Strange, isn't it?", the doctor stood, hands in his pocket, shaking his head disapprovingly, "who would leave a young girl just lying there, accident or not?"

I frowned; I hadn't thought about it that way. If Joey _had_ been the one who ran Ruby over then she had _left_ Ruby. Regardless if it had been Joey or not, someone _left_ my little girl lying there. Whoever if was, they left her lying there to die in the middle of a road.

"I can't handle this!" I ran out the room, overwhelmed by tears.

"Whoa, whoa! Hey!" I ran into Angelo as I rushed through the door at full speed. "Are you okay, Charlie?"

"Okay? Do you really think I'm going to be _okay_?"

Without saying a word, Angelo wrapped his arms around me, leaving me to cry in his arms.

I still had my doubts about Angelo and I, but right now I just needed the comfort. I needed someone there for me.

As I wept, tears soaking the shoulder of Angelo's shirt, I nudged my head up from his shoulder and looked on. Lurking in the shadows of the corridor corner, I saw Joey watching, watching as I cried in misery. She wore a mixed expression; guilt, regret, sorrow, shock. It was hard to tell what each and every expression indicated but, either way, it managed to throw me into deeper confusion. As I kept my eyes fixated on her, I wondered; I wondered what she had meant before, what she was hiding, how she felt and what she knew. One way or another, these were most definitely questions I was determined to figure out.


	4. Authors Note

**Hi! Sorry, I forgot to put my authors note at the bottom of the last chapter so I'll put it here as I want to explain about the last chapter:**

**I know it's a confusing chapter but you have to keep in mind that there's a lot of secrets and lies hidden in this story (and, I don't want to give anything away but I'm glad some of you are already seeing some signs of this!) I won't say anymore in case I ruin it for you but I have a plan for this story and it involves a LOT of drama. So don't worry, you'll slowly see the the secrets and lies unravel! Thank you for all your amazing reviews and the next chapter will be up soon! **


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